Name: Trim Decorating and Refurbishment
Based: London
Website: www.trimdecorating.co.uk
In 2010 I established Cargo Bike Handyman, an odd-job service relying on load-carrying bicycles instead of vans. After building a client base, I established a second business - Trim Decorating and Refurbishment - in early 2014 to take on bigger projects lasting one to four weeks.
I decided to base Trim on customer research I did in late 2013: what reservations and concerns did clients have about hiring tradesmen? What has characterised any bad experiences of other tradesmen, and what could we do differently?
The research was simple but it showed that there were three things we should do to make Trim stand out: consistently produce work of a high standard; be friendly and affable; always communicate reliably and effectively.
What’s striking about these principles is how easily - and yet rarely - they’re followed in the trades. I decided they would be the basis of the Trim service.
With the service defined, I used my experience of sales and marketing to create an attractive and elegant visual identity to appeal directly to the families in our south London target market.
Then we further distinguished the service by investing in the latest dust-free sanding technology.
By mid-2014, with a growing list of happy customers we decided to boost word of mouth with a referral incentive scheme, run with the blessing of The Wine Society: all clients now receive a good bottle, and tasting notes too.
To continue the growth of the business further, we’re expanding into central and west London in early 2015.
Graeme Semple is the founder of Trim Decorating and Refurbishment
